WhatsApp security: Check out these settings to keep your account safe

In today's work-from-home culture, sensitive personal and work-related information is being shared through messaging platforms like WhatsApp. Hence, it has become important to know the best practices and critical settings users need to have in place to secure their WhatsApp accounts and chats. Here are simple ways through which users can secure their WhatsApp accounts:

Keep WhatsApp up to date

WhatsApp developers are always finding bugs and errors in the applications code. Hackers can potentially use these bugs and errors to mess with users' devices. Developers fix these bugs and errors via the release of updates to the application. Hence, it is important for security purposes that users always keep their WhatsApp up to date. Keeping the app up to date will also allow users to access the latest features on WhatsApp.

Setting up two-step-verification on WhatsApp

WhatsApp has a two-step verification process which ensures that other users or hackers cannot take control of a particular user's account without access to a PIN code. This PIN is generated by the account owner.

How to enable two-step verification

1. Open WhatsApp Settings.
2. Tap Account, then tap on 'two-step verification', then tap on 'Enable'.
3. Enter a six-digit PIN and confirm.
4. Users can provide an e-mail address or tap Skip if they don't want to add it. WhatsApp recommends adding an email address as this allows users to reset two-step verification to help safeguard their account.
5. Tap Next.
6. Confirm the email address and tap 'Save' or 'Done'.

Once this feature is enabled, WhatsApp will periodically ask users to enter the six-digit PIN before accessing the app. This is done to ensure that users remember their PIN. Users can reset the PIN through the e-mail ID they had provided.

Biometric lock

Nowadays, many smartphones have fingerprint-based to Face-ID-based biometric security lock features. WhatsApp allows users to enable these biometric locks to restrict access to the application.

How to enable fingerprint lock on Whatsapp

1. Open WhatsApp Privacy settings
2. Scroll to the bottom and tap Fingerprint lock for Android or Screen Lock for iOS.
3. Turn on Unlock with fingerprint.
4. Touch the fingerprint sensor to confirm fingerprint.
5. Users can tap to select the amount of time before fingerprint authentication is prompted.
6. The biometric lock on WhatsApp is now enabled.

Disable WhatsApp chat backup

Unlike regular WhatsApp chats, the backup is not end-to-end encrypted. WhatsApp chat backups are usually stored on Google Drive for Android users or iCloud for iOS users. Hackers and other miscreants can gain access to a user's WhatsApp chats through these cloud services. If users really want their chats to be secure, they should disable the chat backup feature on WhatsApp and wait until the developers come out with end-to-end encryption for the backup.

Also Read: WhatsApp to not compel users to go for new privacy policy

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